Half-staff

I was on the bus to work this morning when I saw the first flag at half-staff on some random high rise in downtown Seattle. My first thought was to wonder if it was for the Seahawks. Instead, it was for Coretta Scott King, whose funeral was today in Georgia.

By happenstance, I saw part of it at lunch. I'd gone to A Burger Place on the Ave and, when I saw Jimmy Carter speaking, I took a seat by the big tv in the back rather than one by the windows in the front.

It was unlike any funeral I've seen, with the eulogizers getting standing ovations when they were introduced, and when they finished. The speeches of the former presidents--Carter, Bush Sr., and Clinton--were mixed with humor and praise, intelligence and perspective, and showed the world that they all share beyond partisan politics. I waited nervously to hear W speak, but I guess he had earlier on.

I was pleased that the speakers, not only the ones I saw then but the clips I saw on the news tonight, were not afraid to speak the truth--about the inequalities that still exist in our society and were so sharply shown with the Gulf Coast hurricanes of last year. I applauded loudly when a speaker mentioned the illegal wire tapping that the Kings had endured. How appropriate that they, in their eulogies for this dedicated fighter for justice and equality, stepped forward to carry on the fight.; and how great it was that W had to sit and take it.